The Gatekeepers
Director: Dror Moreh
Actors: Ami Ayalon, Avi Dichter, Yaakov Peri
Release Date: Monday 30th November -0001
Genre(s): Documentary
Running time: Israel minutes
Detailing the history of the Israeli / Palestinian conflict starting with the 6 Day War back in 1967 up to present day, The Gatekeepers is a documentary from the point of the view of the surviving former leaders of the Shin Bet. This is Israel's top secret security agency, and they have had a hand in every major event in the last forty six years of their country. Everything from the Tel Aviv bus hijacking, to the peace treaty signing, to the terrorist attacks and public rioting in reaction to the signing… this is a country being torn apart, and being led by men who are forced to make decisions which can only end in more bloodshed.
Using talking head interviews with several of the former leaders, archive footage of some of the more historic events, and some fantastic computer-generated recreations, director Dror Moreh weaves a rich tapestry, only occasionally inundating the audience with an overload of information. This is not a movie to be watched passively, or without at least a passing knowledge of some of the more crucial events and people involved. It's also not a documentary to be "enjoyed", with some graphic imagery of the aftermaths of suicide bombings mixed in with the story of men in a position of power, who live in hope but also with the knowledge that things are going to get a lot worse before they get any better.
The insightful, profoundly honest interviews themselves are riveting; these men literally had the power of life and death, and admit that being blinded by the want of revenge or retaliation, misused that power. None of the men betray any real emotion to their actions, but they will get an array of emotional reactions with their revelations, as you will feel anger, hate, frustration and sympathy for them over the course of the movie.
The Gatekeepers is a powerful, intelligent documentary that only sometimes gets itself bogged down with its info-heavy approach and oppressive, emotive soundtrack.
